Recent rapid economic growth and medical development led to hypernutrition and an increase in elderly population, resulting in obesity and a sudden increase in fatty liver patients due to the obesity and an increase in osteoporosis suffers due to aging.
For a long time, adipose tissue has been thought to protect bodily tissue and preserve body heat, and as a storage place of energy for physical activity. However, many recent study results are demonstrating that the adipose tissue performs an important role in physiology and genesis of the human body. In particular, facts have found that materials capable of regulating various physiological activities, such as, balancing energy, controlling blood sugar, regulating insulin sensitivity, generating blood vessels, and the like, for example, adipsin, TNFa, leptin, etc., are secreted in adipocytes, one after another, and thus, the adipocytes has been thought as a hub of regulating metabolism of the human body.
On the other hand, as serious social diseases were caused by obesity, development of medications for inhibiting formation of the adipocytes is actively proceeding. However, even though a rapid increase in non-alcoholic fatty liver patients due to obesity acts seriously threatens the health of modern people, medication for effectively treating this has not been developed so far.
Osteoporosis is the result of collapsing the osteogenic balance between bone forming ability of osteoblasts and bone absorbing ability of osteoclasts. It has been known that the generation of the osteoblasts and the osteoclasts is regulated in view of hormones, external nutrients, and genes, but many genes that are directly causative of bone disease have not been yet found.
Most medications currently used in treatment methods inhibit the bone absorbing ability of bone cells to balance formation of bone cells. However, such medications have serious side effects and insignificant clinical effects, and thus, new-concept medications need to be developed. Even though many researchers have tried to develop medications capable of promoting formation of bone cells, that is, activation of osteoblasts, new medications having beneficial effects still have not been developed.